Saturday – Saint Clement I, pope and mar. – Saint Columbanus, abbot – Our Lady on Saturday

 

Invitation

May I hereby draw your attention to
the daily reading of the Gospel?

This invitation wants to share with You the joy
of the Gospel. Everyone, no one excepted,
can experience that joy by opening their hearts
to the healing power of God’s word.

Available every day.

Consideration

We get an accumulation of images, which are interpreted very differently. No completely conclusive explanation can be found for any of the images. Is it Elijah and Moses ?(verses 6 and 7). Then the rest does not add up. Are it Joshua and Zerubabel ? Are it Peter and Paul , who were killed in Rome under the reign of Nero ? Or is it about the Jewish people, and about the young Christian church that succumbs to the pressure and persecution, but which will eventually rise ? It is impossible to give an unequivocal answer, but in any case it is about the persecution of witnesses of faith and about God doing justice. That message remains topical.

FIRST READING                   Apok. 11, 4-12
These two prophets were a torment
to the inhabitants of the earth.

From the Revelation of the holy apostle John

To me, John, the following was said :
‘These are the two olive trees and the two airers
Who stand before the Lord of the earth.
‘If anyone wants to do evil to them ,
fire comes out of their mouths to consume their enemies ;
yea, whosoever would do them evil must thus die.
‘They have power to close the heavens
So that no rain falls in the time they prophesy,
and they have power over the waters
To turn them into blood ,
and power to smite the earth with all kinds of plagues
as often as they will.
‘But when they have completed their testimony
the Beast rising out of the abyss will make war with them
and it will overcome them and kill them.
‘And in the square of the great city
– which is symbolically called Sodom and Egypt –
where also their Master was crucified,
their corpses will lie
before the eyes of the peoples and tribes and languages and nations,
for three and a half days;
and they will not be tolerated to be buried.
‘And the inhabitants of the earth make merry over them
and they celebrate and send gifts to one another
for these two prophets were a torment to them.’
But after those three and a half days
a spirit of life sailed in them from God and they rose up
and great fear overwhelmed all who saw them.
And they heard a voice from heaven saying to them :
‘Rise up here’,
and in the face of their enemies
they ascended into heaven in a cloud.

INTERLUDIUM                       Ps. 144(143), 1, 2, 9-10

Glorify the Lord, my rock.
Glorify the Lord, my rock,
He made my arms strong in battle,
my hands skillful in fighting.
My support and my fortress, my protector and saviour,
my shield and my refuge, who subdues nations.
Then I sing to You a new song, my God,
then I play to Thee on the lyre.
For You who grant triumph to kings,
Who saved David, Your servant.

ALLELUIA                Ps 119(118), 27

Alleluia.
Lead me in the way of your commands, Lord,
then I will be mindful of your deeds.
Alleluia.

GOSPEL                         Lk 20, 27–40
The Lord is not a God of the dead but of the living.

From the holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to
Luke

In those days there came some of the Sadducees,
who denied the resurrection
came to Jesus asking :
‘Master, we see written with Moses :
If anyone has a married brother who dies childless ,
then his brother must take his brother’s wife
To give to his brother an offspring.
‘Now once there were seven brothers.
‘The first one married and died childless.
‘The second and the third took wives
and in the same way all seven died
without leaving children.
‘The last also died the wife.
‘Of which of them is she now the wife at the resurrection?
‘Surely all seven had her for wife.’
Jesus spoke to them :
‘The children of this world
marry and are given in marriage,
but those who are judged worthy
partake of the other world
and of the resurrection from the dead,
do not marry and are not given in marriage.
‘For they can no longer die
Because they are like angels ;
and, as children of the resurrection, they are children of God.
‘That the dead are resurrected ,
Moses also indicated
where it concerns the bramble,
in that he mentions the Lord :
The God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.
‘Surely the Lord is not a God of the dead but of the living
for before Him all are alive.’
Some of the scribes remarked :
‘Master that Thou hast said well.’
They therefore no longer dared to ask Him anything more.

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Fratelli tutti

Encyclical of

POPE FRANCISCUS

On brotherhood and social friendship

Universal love that sustains people

106. There is a fundamental recognition that is essential to achieve
social friendship and universal fraternity: one must realise
how valuable a human life is, how valuable a person is, always
and in all circumstances. If everyone is so valuable, then
we say clearly and firmly that ‘the mere fact of being born
in a place with fewer resources or less development, does not justify
that some people live with less dignity’. This is an
elementary principle of social life, which is usually and in
variously ignored by those who see that it does not
matches their idea of the world or does not serve their purpose.

To be continued
Every day at 1 am

 

The Bible text in this issue is taken from The New Bible Translation,
©Dutch Bible Society 2004/2007.
Considerations from Liturgical suggestions for weekdays and Sundays
Fratelli tutti Official English translation

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